Electronic tracking devices are used to provide a third party with information about a location of an object or person that is being tracked. Due to the fact that the object or person that is being tracked has the potential, by implication, to be mobile, the tracking device cannot be attached to a fixed power supply. Where the tracking device is used to track an object which generates its own electrical power, such as a vehicle, the tracking device can be coupled to the electrical power supply of the object. However, for the tracking device to work effectively its operation should not be contingent on electrical power being supplied by the object which it is being used to track, in case the power supply of the tracked object is intentionally disconnected or accidentally fails. Similarly, for objects which do not have an electrical power supply to share with the tracking device, the tracking device must be autonomously powered. This power is typically provided by batteries, which typically require regular maintenance and charging.
Furthermore, in many cases it is advantageous for the presence and location of the tracking device to be hidden to prevent its discovery, in order that it cannot be tampered with or removed from the object or person. To that end there is a general desire to reduce the size of the tracking device. This presents challenges to the designers of such devices, since where the tracking device is powered by a battery reducing the overall size of the device will result in the use of a battery with a reduced storage capacity than would be possible with a larger tracking device. Hence, it can be seen that where the tracking device is powered by internal power cells, power management of the device is a critical issue. This also affects the manner in which the device operates, since the rate at which the location of the device is acquired and passed on to a remote server will impact directly on the operating life of a battery powered tracking device.
It is an aim of the present invention to provide an improved tracking device which mitigates some of these problems and to provide a power module for use in such a device.